


First Market-Day

by ZephyrOnTheWind



Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: Angst, Gen, book XVII update, possible history
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-22
Updated: 2018-10-22
Packaged: 2019-08-05 19:17:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,016
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16373477
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZephyrOnTheWind/pseuds/ZephyrOnTheWind
Summary: Asra's parents finally took him to the market





	First Market-Day

**Author's Note:**

> I have no excuses for myself

"It's easy to get lost in the crowd, dear. Make sure you stay close to me or your dad."

Asra looks up to her, smiling. "Okay mom."

Salim tilts his head towards her. "He'll be fine, dear. You've gone over the rules already."

"I know, I just don't want him to get excited and forget."

"Aisha, he's practically vibrating, I don't think he can get any more excited."

She looks down to her son, bouncing in place in front of the door. He may have come across it before in his endless adventures of the palace grounds, but the handle was still too high for him to reach. His hands grasp and the strap of his satchel, filled with the treasures of children and his favorite book. Aisha sighs.

"Alright, let's go to market." She opens the door, and Asra cheers, waiting for her to go out before bounding out the door.

The sight of the fields stops him in his track. "Wow."

Salim chuckles, nudging Asra forward. "There's even more to see, little one. Keep your feet moving."

He turns his head up to Salim, smiling. "Good."

~~~

A small gasp escapes Asra as his parents walk him to the edge of the market crowd. "There's so many..."

Salim crouches down next to him. "Anything you want to see first?"

"Everything!"

Aisha smiles as Salim scoops their son up, setting him on a shoulder.

"There's even more people! And there's food! Can we get food?"

Salim sets him back down, laughing. "Of course we can get food, little one."

The three of them navigate the crowd, stopping and talking to the different people from different walks of life. The adults listen to the people at each booth, asking them about the big things in their lives, whether it was what the fishermen charged the fishmonger, or the farmers about the rain. Asra is fascinated by whatever wares are in front of him, and at every booth at least one item is bought.

The baker's stall has seating, and Asra sits down to watch his parents listen about wheat and grain taxes as he eats his pumpkin bread. His feet swing from the seat, his parents not quite looking at him. He doesn't shout or yell when the arm wraps around his waist and lifts him out of his seat. He's whisked away from the booth, away from the crowd, down one alley then another.

Asra finds his voice when the stranger stops running. "Let me go! put me down right now! Take me back!" He kicks and twists and tries to get out of the stranger's grasp, but he just holds tighter, ignoring the cries.

"I don't know why you needed this exact kid, but here you go."

A figure appears, taking Asra from the man. Its grip burns, claws digging into him, and his struggling stops. Instead he glares at the man who grabbed him. "You're gonna be in so much trouble."

The blond man barks in laughter, raising one of his sharp eyebrows. "You really don't know how to read the situation, do ya Squirt?"

Asra sneers back at him. "You really don't know what you just did, do ya Creep."

"Now listen here you little-" He cuts himself off, turning away from him.

Asra hears it, and starts calling out. "Mom! Dad! Moooom!" The two turn the corner, running full tilt, and freeze. Asra can see the fear drop onto their faces. He feels a coldness wrap around his heart.

Aisha watches Asra's confidence fall as he sees their fear. At any other time she would reassure him, make him feel safe, let him learn. But she can't. She has to focus on his safety instead of his happiness. Because the Devil is holding him, and she doesn't know what to do. Salim grabs her hand, and she looks at him out of the corner of her eye. He doesn't look back, focused on their son and the threat holding him. She squeezes his hand, then faces the challenge in front of her.

"What do you want?"

The Devil throws his head back and laughs. "Right to the point, aren't you, dear Countess?"

"And you avoiding an answer. Tell me, what is one of the Major Arcana doing here?"

"At the moment? Hoping to help your poor son here."

"And in return?"

The Devil grins, and fear bolts down her spine. "Just some of your time, it won't be too much."

Salim squeezes her hand, and she sees him shake his head ever so slightly. And she knows, she knows, she knows better, but he's holding her son and the claws are sharp. She squeezes back and ever so slightly nods. He bows his head, then nods back.

"I accept."

"Excellent."

Their world goes grey before dropping away from them, and they black out.

~~~

Salim wakes up first, and realizes exactly where they are. He stands up, looking around for Aisha, and finally spots her on a small hill. She looks to him and smiles sadly. He walks up to her and rests a hand on her shoulder. She rests her hand on his, then looks back down to the lake.

"I've already seen him a few times. I'm not sure what's going on, but at least he's alive."

He sits down next to her. "Can you tell how time is moving for him?"

"They were too brief, but he still looked young. Sometimes I thought he could see me."

"How long since the last one?"

"Ten minutes? Maybe fifteen."

As she finishes her guess, a loud banging rings throughout the magic gate. They stand up, trying to find where it's coming from. As they get closer to the source, they hear someone crying out.

"Please! Please, open the door!"

The two look to each other, then sprint towards the tree it's coming from, finding a door on the other side. As they reach it, a flash of light blinds them. As their vision clears, they see a man standing in the now open door.

"Mom? Dad?"

Salim looks to Aisha. "Oh no."


End file.
